Singapore Prime Minister's Brother Defies Threat of Lawsuit

In his first comments since being threatened with legal action by Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam and Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Mr. Lee Hsien Yang - younger brother of Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said he was simply stating the facts reported by the media, according to The Straits Times .

In his July 23 article, Mr Lee said the two ministers rented state-owned properties through an agency that one of them controlled. Mr Lee said the ministers had trees cut down on the property and had it refurbished with state funding. The agency in question is the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), which is overseen by Minister Shanmugam.

Mr. Lee Hsien Yang in 2020

“They have misunderstood what I said,” Mr. Lee Hsien Yang said of the July 23 post. “My post does not assert that Shanmugam and V. Balakrishnan acted improperly or for personal gain, through the SLA giving them preferential treatment in illegally felling trees and also having the SLA pay for their renovation,” Mr. Lee’s younger brother said in the new post on July 29.

"My post simply stated facts that have been widely reported in the Singapore and international media," Mr Lee continued. The Singapore government had previously issued a fake news alert to Mr Lee over the post.

The two ministers said on July 27 that they had asked their lawyers to send a letter to Mr. Lee Hsien Yang, demanding that he withdraw the accusations, pay compensation and apologize or face lawsuits. The compensation will be donated to charity.

"My article was published in the UK. If K. Shanmugam and V. Balakrishnan believe they have enough evidence, they should sue me in the UK," Mr. Lee Hsien Yang wrote.

According to Channel News Asia, Mr. Lee Hsien Yang and his wife are currently living abroad. The couple left Singapore after being investigated by the police for perjury during the proceedings. Mr. Lee Hsien Yang is also accused of lying in judicial proceedings about the will of his father, the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

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